1. Field of the Invention
This invention is directed to seals of the type which are designed and constructed so that a portion of the seal is severed if, after the seal has been in placed in use by folding a first portion of the seal relative to another portion thereof, any attempt is made to remove the seal by unfolding the first portion so that visual evidence is immediately provided of tampering. Such seals are utilized to provide an indication of unauthorized access to enclosures such as buildings, vehicles, bags or pouches, meters and other areas or items.
More particularly, the present invention is directed to such seals having one or more end portions which are connected to the main body of the seals by one or more lines of weakness or score lines which includes two converging segments which are oriented generally in an oblique angle with respect to longitudinal axis or centerlines of the seals and which segments extend across the width of such seals. The score lines are specifically designed to cause an initial weakening along the score line segments upon initially folding the end portions relative to the main body of the seals and wherein a controlled break or severing of the end portions along the segments results if any attempt is made to unfold the end portions after they have been folded. In this manner, the seals cannot be manipulated or tampered with to gain access to a sealed area without destroying the seals.
2. History of the Related Art
There are numerous metallic and plastic seals which have been designed to give a visual indication of tampering with the seals after they have been placed into use. Such seals are not designed to physically prevent individuals from gaining access to sealed areas or enclosures, but rather to deter tampering by producing evidence of tampering and thus increasing the risk that the tampering will be subsequently discovered. Such seals are widely utilized for use with electric, gas, and water meters, shipping containers including cargo containers, tanks, drums, bags, boxes, pouches, vehicles such as trucks and tractor trailers, storage warehouses and security areas.
Known seals, however, have not been satisfactory to provide clear and consistent evidence of tampering in all cases where tampering has actually occurred. Conventional seals have been constructed from metallic sheet materials and have included score lines which function to locally weaken the seals. Such seals have been designed to be able to withstand limited bending about the scores without severing, and to sever along the scores if bent again to re-open the seal. Generally, such seals have been designed to sever along the scores following bending in two different directions about the scores.
Such known seals are exemplified by U.S. Pat. Nos. 979,452 to Edgar, Sr., and 2,926,944 and 2,980,462 to Moberg. The known seals have included scores oriented either perpendicularly or at oblique angles relative to the longitudinal axis of the seals. However, with such seals, a bending force applied at an end portion of a seal will not necessarily act directly along the scores to cause severing to occur. That is, with conventional seals, whether the bending force acts along the scores is dependent on how and where the force is applied at the end portions of the seals when bending the seals. Bending forces applied to the end portions during tampering will not always act on the scores such that a seal will inevitably be severed to indicate tampering. Thus, the known seals are inadequate.
By way of example, many conventional seals are designed so that an end portion of the seals is foldable about a score line into a substantially overlapping relationship with a main body of the seals to thereby retain a wire, strap, cable, handle or other locking or closure element therebetween. The seals are supposed to sever in the event an end portion is unfolded away from the captured wire or other element and thus provide the necessary indication of tampering. However, due to the difficulty in controlling the depth of the scores and the variations in the materials which are utilized to form conventional seals, it is sometimes possible to manipulate an end portion of the seals a sufficient degree to allow the seal to be tampered with without severing the end portion. If the end portion does not sever, the seals have not provided the necessary function of providing evidence of tampering.
Additional prior art bend-break seals are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,001,209 to Miller, 1,064,462 to Edgar, 1,100,372 to Houck, 1,155,772 to Tyden, 1,344,491 to Edgar, 1,416,683 to Brooks, 1,762,961 to Dessauer, 1,934,121 to Fluker, 1,937,743 to Brooks and 2,130,787 to Borland.